Music is a curiously subtle art with innumerable, varying emotional connotations. It is made up of many ingredients and according to the proportions of these components; it can be soothing, or invigorating, ennobling or vulgarizing, philosophical or orgiastic. It has powers for evil as well as for good. (Ottley, 2001) Music has been a part of our everyday living; it has contributed a lot in providing us enough reasons to experience the goodness of life. Music is an avenue for learning and reflects on the realities of life. Research shows that music has been an integral part of our body and soul connecting us to the positive forces of nature and its bounty. Music helps to increase our confidence and self esteem. It is a channel for cognitive growth and development that will enhance our perception and understanding of the things around us that definitely has a strong impact to the world we live in. Music can be an effective tool in the healing process of a certain behavioral situation that will gradually ease such pain and depression that a person felt a long time ago or at present.
Today, music is no longer for the adult but it opened its door for younger minds. Teaching music to children was proven to be beneficial. Music lessons provide children essential developmental benefits aside from the knowledge and skill of playing a musical instrument. Some researches worldwide suggest that musical lessons in children aids in enhancing their intelligence and their academic achievement. It is also significant in building self-esteem and in improving discipline. (Wikipedia, 2006)
Furthermore, Petress (2005) recognizes the importance of music education. He states that:
“…music teaches a transfer of abstractions (notes) into concrete realities (music); music teaches patience with one's self and with others as well as with tasks; music performance aids in building and refining coordination and grace; music aids in mental coordination and timing; any instruction in the arts advances a sense of aesthetics; music teaches one about history and culture and builds tolerance of and appreciation of other peoples; music offers useful sensory stimulation; so much so that there are music therapists who use music to calm, quiet, and heal patients; the arts foster greater social interaction; music incorporates a spiritual dimension to life; musical performance opens a vehicle for improvising; and performance allows the musician to learn to accept and recognize the value of criticism.” (p.112)
This paper aims to discuss how to encourage young pupils who lacks confidence in playing music. It will also delve into some propositions and solutions on how to solve the aforementioned difficulty.
Learning Music with Children
Certainly, most psychologists would agree that a large amount of animal learning can be described in terms of conditioning (Hilgard, 1996). Learning is a complex process to study because there are so many factors or variables that affect the course of learning. Each of these variables can cause learning to be rapid or slow, efficient or inefficient, and remembered or forgotten.
Like children, music learning is no easy task. There are many considerations that every participant must face such as age, maturity, and readiness to learn in order to begin. However, Mcpherson & Parncutt (1999, p. 4) believes that every child possess musical potentialities. Some of these potentials can be manifested in various shapes and forms. In achieving the musical potentialities of children, every one must undergo the process of learning. Through formal education and constant interest in music, every child will be able to explore such potentials.
When learning occurred, there are still some things to be considered in expressing, showcasing, and exposing of musical potentialities. Among this is the lack of confidence to in playing. At this point in time, the responsibility of the educator is very vital and necessary.
Confidence: the Teacher’s Task
There have been studies that say that the intervention of the teacher throughout the children’s activities can substantially improve the pupils understanding of the concepts involved and the accuracy of the results (Milne, 1998). As a teacher, here are some suggestions to be considered in improving pupils’ confidence.
Planning - Planning is commonly known as the process of formulating in advance as organized behaviour action. There should be careful planning on the best way to guide the pupils through the process that will not only encourage them to think the idea or play the music through but also gives emphasis to relevant areas.
Practice – Cliché as it may seem but “practice makes perfect” belief still works. The responsibility of the pedagogue is to teach, guide, and motivate the pupil. With constant practice and proper attitude, improvement is always close at hand.
Motivation and Reward - People especially children usually do what they want to do unless they are otherwise motivated. They must be motivated by themselves or by an external stimulus. Motivation can be described as the driving force of individual behaviour to fulfill needs or achieve goals. O’Neill (1994) defines motivation as the "degree to which an individual wants and chooses to engage in certain specified behaviours“. Motivation is, in effect, inducing others in a specific way towards goals specifically stated by the motivator. On the other hand, experts say parents should encourage their children. Encouragement credits the effort, or progress, the child has made, and when we talk about what the child has done, not how good it is, parents help their children recognize their own abilities and progress. This gives the child the opportunity to do well if he or she wishes to, thus nourishing their own self-esteem. (Mcpherson & Parncutt, 1999)
Performing with others – By means of performing with others, the child will not be conscious that s/he is performing alone. And that the fear, pressure and thought of being alone is far from realization. It is also recognizable that performing with others will develop self-esteem. One needs to remember that self-esteem is not something that one can normally teach children. A child’s self-esteem is established through the result of their achievements, it is not the cause of their achievement. Therefore, learning or accomplishing something makes the child feel good, and confident, which in turn raises their self-esteem. (Mcpherson & Parncutt, 1999) A simple aid would be to help children set their own goals.
Confidence is learned. Along with the teacher’s responsibility, every child can improve his/her confidence with the help of the parents and the environment he/she belongs. The encouragement, motivation, constant planning and practice will eventually lead to gaining self-confidence as well as self-esteem.
The teacher plays a great role in establishing, improving and maintaining the confidence of his/her pupils. To quote Dennis Monk: “Good teaching of music will begin from the perspective of what the novelists call "point of view," and that rests with the individual teacher who is still sufficiently idealistic to want to make things better for the students and not the school and its board.”
References
Hilgard., E., ed. (1996) Theories of Learning and Instructions, 2nd ed. NSSE
Yearbook.
Mcpherson, G.E. & Parncutt, R. eds. (2002) The Science & Psychology of Music
Performance: Creative Strategies for Teaching and Learning. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 4 and 31+.
Milne, I. (1997). Children's Intuitive Knowledge About & Use of Investigations
in Science. Unpublished Master Research Report: Auckland University.
Monk, D. C. (1996 July 1) Dionysus Redux: rethinking the teaching of music. Arts
Education Policy Review. Copyright Gale Group.
O’Neill, H.F. (1994) Motivation: Theory and research. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence
Erlbaum Associates.
Ottley, J. (2001 October 18) Appropriate Music in our Lives. Brigham Young
University, Idaho Forum.
Petress, K. (2005) The Importance of Music Education. Education, 126(1),
pp.112+. Copyright 2005 Project Innovation (Alabama); Copyright 2005 Gale Group.
Wikipedia contributors (2006). Music lesson. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
Retrieved January 9, 2006 from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Music_lesson&oldid=33441968.
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